Journal Archives

The backdrop for the story is the upcoming Preakness. Certain members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff are exchanging cable transmissions, ostensibly for purposes of placing bets on the race. What they are really up to is plotting a military coup.

Inspiration for the story was derived, in part, by the revelations in 1933 by USMC General Smedley Butler that certain wealthy businessmen had approached him to learn if he would be willing to lead the county after a completed coup.

The story features the outspoken head of the Joint Chiefs, Air Force General James Matsoon Scott (ably portrayed by Burt Lancaster) who espouses a conservative hard line and who is at odds with the progressive president. The character evokes shades of real-life retired General Edwin Walker who was making speeches at conservative rallies in 1961-62.

After reading an advance copy of the novel, President John F. Kennedy was so impressed with its warning against a conservative agenda dominating the military that he prevailed upon his Hollywood contacts to have the story made into a movie.

President Kennedy did not live to see the 1964 movie release. Lee Harvey Oswald used his newly purchased Carcano carbine to shoot at retired General Walker in April 1963. He is said to have fired the same rifle on November 22, 1963, to assassinate President Kennedy.

That fresco is the centerpiece of the images on the ceiling of the Raphael Room of the Papal Palace. The fresco suggests that Constantine ordered the destruction of pagan statures. However, in reality, Constantine was tolerant of them. The destruction of the pagan statues was accomplished by Christians operating pursuant to their own agenda.

I recall the evening that Scoop won the NY primary. When he was interviewed after the results were in, he came off as having an old-school mindset about politics. He used his TV time to repeat his strategy of focusing on the major states, but he failed to address the voters' concerns such as inflation and the weakening job market.

On the eve of the January 19, 1976 Iowa caucuses, Bayh and former Georgia Gov. Jimmy Carter were considered the leading candidates. Bayh ultimately finished a distant third behind Uncommitted delegates and Carter, seemingly hindered by his support for women's rights. "Bayh has become the focal point of the issue," said the executive director of the National Right to Life Committee since Bayh opposed a constitutional amendment banning abortion before his subcommittee. Liberal support did not coalesce and Bayh finished third in the New Hampshire primary and then seventh in the Massachusetts primary.

Ellen McCormick, a non-politician who ran on a pro-life platform, ran in several states and received federal matching funds. Every Sunday at Catholic Mass, the lector (i. e., lay person who read aloud) petitioned the deity to bless her campaign.

One pundit branded Frank Church and Jerry Brown as the "Wizards of the West." That was after Mo Udall had dropped out.

Covering the election for CBS was Walter Cronkite. For NBC it was David Brinkley, who proceeded to join John Chancellor as co-anchor of the Nightly News. Frank Reynolds was the anchor for ABC.

In the 1990s in his Sunday morning half-hour television show, Washington Update, Representative Traficant delved into certain disturbing questions such as the 1991 death of Danny Casolaro, a free-lance writer who investigated scandals such as the Iran-Contra Affair http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Casolaro , and variances in descriptions given by witnesses of Oswald in Mexico City in September/October 1963. According to Rep. Traficant, one witness described Oswald as "stocky." Rep. Traficant also expounded on the fact that security surveillance photographs from the date on which Oswald is said to have visited the Russian Embassy in Mexico City have disappeared.

I appreciate your post containing the article which takes O'Really and his ghost writer to task for their schlock book on the JFK assassination. For years, I have ruminated on many the the details which are so well covered in the article.

It is always interesting to find a new corner of the tragedy to explore.

It seems to me that it was not sound police practice to back up the car and open its door when it was so close to Michael Brown and Johnson when, at the time, Wilson regarded them as suspects in the store incident. It seems as though Wilson was trying to set up a resisting arrest scenario. After all, Wilson testified that he had been surprised by Michael Brown's hostile attitude when he previously told Michael to walk on the sidewalk instead of the street. Police know that a young male who has just perpetrated a foolish act is likely to up the ante when confronted by a police officer. I think that, when Wilson opened the car door, Michael lost his temper and pushed it back. Both of them proceeded to ratchet up the use of force. I think that Wilson drew his weapon and Michael pushed Wilson's arm to avoid being shot. The first shot ensued nonetheless. I do not think this chain of events should have gotten this far. Wilson should have radioed for backup when he realized that Michael Brown matched the description of the perpetrator in the store incident.

I was in my second grade classroom at Catholic school when the public address speaker suddenly blared a radio news report that President Kennedy had been shot while riding in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas, and that he was taken to a hospital where his condition was critical. I was generally aware of the location of the city because a family member had worked there. I was not sure of what a motorcade was, but I came to understand that the president had been seated in the back seat of a convertible when he was shot. Before long, the class was given a restroom break. In the hall, the principal explained the meaning of "critical." When we returned to the classroom, the public address speaker was quiet. After a short while, it again started with the radio news feed. The president was dead.

A former Upper St. Clair High School student who already claimed she had been raped once was raped again on school property after school officials used her as bait in a failed attempt to catch students they believed were having sex in the building, her attorneys claim.

. . .

The girl's attorneys contend that two girls were raped in the stairwell that afternoon, including their client.

"Ghilani's 'sting operation,' which prevented von Waldow from placing Jane Doe on her bus and out of harm's way so that she could be used as bait, resulted in her being violently raped. Ghilani and the school district acted in utter disregard of her welfare."

David J. Barton, the attorney representing the student, called Mr. Ghilani's attempt at a sting "ill-conceived."

"As a parent, I'm offended that a high school principal would use anybody's daughter as bait."

Among the claims by the girl and her parents are that school officials failed to act when they knew the boy was a threat.